Tobey's BepInEx Pack for Subnautica: Below Zero

This is a BepInEx pack for Subnautica: Below Zero, preconfigured and ready to use on Windows, macOS and Linux (including SteamOS)!

In particular, this pack comes with:

• BepInEx Loading Progress Splash Screen, a BepInEx patcher that displays a loading screen on game startup,
• Tobey's Subnautica Config Handler, a configurable BepInEx patcher to automatically configure BepInEx for backwards compatibility with legacy mods (e.g. QModManager),
• Tobey's Unity Audio Patcher for BepInEx, a configurable BepInEx patcher to automatically add Unity audio support,
• Tobey's Game Info Logger for BepInEx, a simple BepInEx plugin to log information about the currently loaded Unity game,
• Tobey's File Tree Logger for BepInEx, a configurable BepInEx plugin which logs the file tree to aid in troubleshooting,
• Tobey's Timestamp Logger for BepInEx, a configurable BepInEx plugin which logs the current timestamp, and
• Tobey's macOS Process Fix for Subnautica: Below Zero, a BepInEx patcher which allows BepInEx plugins with the process filter SubnauticaZero to load on macOS.

Compatibility with QModManager

The TL;DR is that QModManager is compatibile with BepInEx, but there are some things to bear in mind.

Easy Automated Installation

Windows (Vortex)

Vortex is a tool for installing and managing mods on Windows. It can install all kinds of mods for Subnautica: Below Zero and other games, including this pack.

1. Install Vortex if you haven't already. Make sure it's fully up-to-date.

2. Install the Subnautica Below Zero Support Vortex extension with Vortex.

   To do so, just click the Vortex button at the top its page, and allow your browser to open the link with Vortex. Inside of Vortex, the extension browser should open up with Subnautica Below Zero Support selected. Just click Install near the top, then close the extension browser. Vortex will tell you in the 🔔 notification area at the top right that you need to restart Vortex after it has been installed, so when you get that notification, go ahead and restart it.

3. Click the Vortex button at the top of the Nexus Mods mod page to install the BepInEx pack with Vortex.

With that done, you're all set and can run the game. You can now easily keep BepInEx up-to-date by selecting Subnautica: Below Zero from the Games tab in Vortex, then navigating to the Mods tab and clicking Check for Updates at the top. Vortex will notify you if updates are available, and there'll be a little yellow icon by its version. Click the icon to get the update.

And likewise, you can use Vortex to install, manage and update other mods when browsing Subnautica: Below Zero mods on Nexus Mods by clicking the Vortex button on their pages. For more fine-grained control over which mod files you install, you can instead click the Mod Manager Download button from the Files tab of each mod.

For mods downloaded from other websites, you can install those with Vortex, too! Just drag the .zip, .rar or .7z archive into the Drop File(s) section at the bottom of the Mods tab after selecting Subnautica: Below Zero from the Games tab, and Vortex will install it for you assuming it is a recognised mod type. Note that Vortex won't be able to check for updates on these mods, which will be indicated by a little yellow ⚠️ warning sign in the Version column of its row on the Mods tab. It doesn't mean the mod itself won't work, just that Vortex doesn't know the version number of the mod and can't tell you if updates are available or not, so it will be up to you to check for updates on that mod and download and install them.

macOS (gib)

gib is a command-line tool which automates installation of BepInEx on macOS, as installing it manually is quite cumbersome and error-prone. gib makes it easy.

1. Download Tobey's BepInEx Pack for Subnautica: Below Zero. Make sure to unzip it in your Downloads folder if your browser doesn't do this automatically.
2. Open Terminal with Launchpad or Spotlight (press ⌘ Space, type terminal, press Enter).
3. Copy the command from the Usage section of the gib README and paste it into the Terminal with ⌘ V, and press Enter to run it.

If you get stuck, refer to the gib README for help.

Manual Installation

Quick start

Windows

Extract the .zip into the game folder replacing any files if prompted, run the game once to generate all needed files and folders, then quit the game at the main menu and assuming you saw the BepInEx loading screen you're good to go. Remember to check the Installing mods section for info on how to install mods!

If something doesn't go according to plan or you need further guidance, please refer to the full instructions. Don't worry, it looks harder than it is. Please don't skimread!

Linux and Steam Deck handhelds

Same as for Windows but additionally follow step 4 from the full instructions.

For Steam Deck handhelds, switch to Desktop mode to follow the instructions. Once you've got it all working, you'll be able to play with mods in either Desktop or Gaming mode as preferred.

macOS

It is strongly recommended that macOS users install with gib, as manual installation on macOS is extremely tedious and error prone!

If you are a glutton for punishment and are determined to install manually, follow the idiot's guide to macOS installation.

Full instructions for Windows, Linux and Steam Deck handhelds

To install manually, follow these instructions:

1. Download Tobey's BepInEx Pack for Subnautica: Below Zero.

2. Make sure the game is not running.

3. Extract the contents of the downloaded archive into the game folder. Replace any files if prompted.

   ℹ️ That just means open the .zip file and drag the files and folders out into the game folder!

   If done correctly, inside your game folder it should look something like this (the entries in bold being from the pack):

   ⚠️ This list is used as a reference and is non-exhaustive, there will be other stuff, please don't delete anything!

   • BepInEx
   • SubnauticaZero_Data
   • doorstop_config.ini
   • SubnauticaZero.exe
   • winhttp.dll

   ⚠️ If you are missing any of these files or folders, you are probably installing to the wrong place, and this pack will not work.

4. Skip this step if you play on Windows!

   Linux and Steam Deck handheld users: go to your Steam library, right-click the game, select Properties... and set the launch options:

   WINEDLLOVERRIDES="winhttp=n,b" %command%
   

   ⚠️ Do not set the launch options if you play the game on Windows, or the game won't run!

   ℹ️ If preferred, Linux users can instead set the Wine configuration (winecfg) for the game to add winhttp as a DLL override via the Libraries tab. Remove the launch options if applicable. Full instructions here.

5. Run the game as normal.

   Note that if you own the game on Steam, you should always launch it with Steam - do not run the .exe file directly (nor via a shortcut to the .exe), as launching the .exe directly causes issues for BepInEx. You can set up a BepInEx-compatible shortcut on your desktop by right-clicking the game in Steam and selecting Manage > Add desktop shortcut.

   The same may apply to other platforms, e.g. Epic Games Launcher, Microsoft Store, etc.

   Launching the game with Vortex should be fine too.

   You'll know that BepInEx is working when a loading screen pops up. This screen will disappear once your mods have finished loading.

6. Exit the game at the main menu.

Assuming you have followed these instructions correctly, inside the BepInEx folder there will now be a file LogOutput.log (or simply LogOutput - it's the same thing). This is your log file, and it will be egenerated every time the game runs with technical and diagnostic information about your installed mods, and any errors that might happen while playing. It's very useful for troubleshooting, and it is recommended to share it whenever asking for help with your mods. It is equivalent to the BepInEx console window you might be familiar with, containing all of the same information.

If this file is missing or you didn't see the loading screen, it usually means that you have not installed the pack correctly and you should probably try again from scratch. Make sure to pay careful attention to the instructions and don't skimread any of the steps.

Otherwise, you can now install mods according to the Installing mods section below.

Installing mods

It is strongly recommended to read and follow the instructions provided in the description of each mod you download.

However, sometimes mod authors don't give good (or any) instructions, or you just can't be bothered to read them (we've all been there). For those occasions, here's a simple reference:

Mod installation by type

Mod installation by .zip structure

Mod installation by requirements

I still can't figure it out!

First, double check and follow the instructions on the mod page. If you still can't figure it out or there aren't any instructions on the mod page, you'll have to get in touch with the author of the mod somehow. Your best bet is usually going to be the Nexus Mods posts tab of that mod. Make sure to check that the question hasn't already been asked and answered.

Issues, questions, etc.

First, please make sure to check that the answer you're looking for isn't already somewhere on this page. Use Ctrl+F to search for keywords.

Second, check the FAQ to see if there is an answer there.

If not, at this moment, you can use the following channels to ask for help

• Subnautica Modding Community Discord
• Nexus Mods posts tab
• GitHub issues

Useful links for mod authors

• Doorstop: debugging Unity Mono games
• BepInEx: writing basic plugin walkthrough
• BepInEx: useful plugins for modding
• BepInEx: patching game methods at runtime
• Subnautica Modding Community Discord

Licensing

This GitHub repository contains no code or binaries from external sources, only code used to automatically put together a preconfigured .zip of the BepInEx pack.

However, the .zip created by this repository's code contains binaries from the following projects, redistributed without modification and in accordance with their licenses:

The code in this repository is licensed under the ISC license.